The Carbon Footprint has become the latest fad among companies seeking to appear environmentally responsible. Also known as a “climate footprint,” it poses itself as an environmental indicator.
It measures the amount of greenhouse gas emissions generated by a product, service, activity or organization, the reduction of which results in an improvement in:
- energy efficiency
- resources
- economic savings
However, this trend looks actually like another unnecessary bureaucratic procedure and yet another attempt to invent a new way to get paid in a time of crisis. This practice offers few real actual benefits for either the environment or for the company and its employees.
Carbon Footprint is a harmful eco-bureaucracy for businesses
The procedures required to obtain the Carbon Footprint certification are complex and costly, placing an additional bureaucratic burden on entrepreneurs. First of all, a vast amount of data from a variety of sources must be collected to calculate the carbon footprint:
- collection
- organization
- analysis of such data
This, certainly requires significant time and resources, especially for larger companies with complex operations.
Carbon Footprint Certification: long lead times and endless documentation
Data to obtain Carbon Footprint certification must be processed and submitted in the form of reports, which, for certifying agencies, must be accurate, detailed and meet the required standards.
This requires specialized skills and, eventually, additional personnel or the hiring of external consultants.
In addition to this, external reviews and audits are often required for proper organization to verify the accuracy and reliability of the data submitted by the company. The process requires other external experts to assess the company’s compliance with certification standards, and thus more time and documentation.
Certification means ongoing commitment
The certification obtained is not a one-time event, but an ongoing commitment: companies must constantly monitor and record their environmental data to demonstrate compliance with standards over time.
The latter may require establishing an internal monitoring system and allocating resources to maintain and update the data.
In short, whether we proceed by traditional or digital means, which means by wasting stationery or electricity or computing resources (which in turn means consuming nonrenewable energy and increased CO2 emission) we actually waste resources to certify the waste of resources: what a paradox.
Carbon Footprint for Image and Marketing
Companies are driven to obtain Carbon Footprint certification primarily to show a green image to the world and consequently for marketing reasons.
Possessing such a certification can provide a competitive advantage and enhance the company’s reputation in the eyes of consumers, who go crazy the more green a company is, without questioning the actual presence of an environmental commitment beyond that image.
In our view at Kilton, this has become just another tool for self-promotion, with no tangible or immediately refutable impact.
Instead of investing time, money and energy in a certification that produces minimal results, companies that are truly interested in reducing their carbon footprint should just do it by taking concrete action.
For them, sustainability should be integrated into daily business processes, rather than relying on a certification badge.
What do you think of our thoughts about the Carbon Footprint?
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